AMVETS Call to Action: Volunteer & help our veterans today! February 2013 Volume 37 No. 2 AMVETS State Headquarters 2200 South 6 th Street Springfield, IL 62703 NONPROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 174 PEORIA, IL www.ilamvets.org AMVETS continue support of students with various scholarship opportunities The Illinois AMVETS Service Foundation has been offering scholarship opportunities for over 40 years. In fact, since 2000, Illinois AMVETS has awarded $1.35 million in scholarships. This year Illinois AMVETS Ser- vice Foundation is offering the following scholarships: Illinois AMVETS Service Foundation, Il- linois AMVETS Junior ROTC and Illinois AMVETS Trade School. All Illinois High School Seniors graduating 2012-2013 school year are eligible. Applications were sent to all high schools in Illinois in early November. You can also download an application by visit- ing: hp://www.ilamvets.org/ prog_scholarships.cfm. Following are sponsored scholarships and requirements for each: Illinois AMVETS Service Foundation Scholarship 1-Year, $1,000 Non-renewable Eligibility Requirements: 1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior 2. Applicant must have taken the ACT or SAT Illinois AMVETS JROTC 1-Year, $1,000 Non-renewable Eligibility Requirements: 1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior 2. Applicant must have taken the ACT or SAT 3. Participate in a Junior ROTC program Illinois AMVETS Trade School Scholarship 1-Year, $1,000 Non-renewable Eligibility Requirements: 1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior who has been accepted in a pre-approved trade school program (A copy of an acceptance leer must accompany the application.) Subsidiary Organizations Illinois AMVETS subsid- iary organizations are also proud to offer scholarships. Illinois AMVETS Sad Sacks One Year Scholarship, Monetary Amount To Be Determined Eligibility Requirements: 1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior who has been accepted in a pre-approved nursing program (A copy of the acceptance leer must accompany the application.) 2. Prove satisfactory academic record, character, interest and activity record, and financial need. AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary Scholarships Illinois AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary Memorial Scholarship 1-Year, $500 Eligibility Requirements: 1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior 2. Applicant must be a child or grandchild of a Veteran who served after September 15th, 1940 and who was Honorably Discharged or who is presently serving in the military. 3. Must have taken the ACT or SAT Information continued on page 2. In this issue: • Scholarship details • Post 235 is in the spotlight • Insurance info for home-based businesses • Post 161 helps Operation Warm Heart • Post 66 & Post 256 participate in holiday events • Knox County AMVETS get a special donation • All you need to know about the February SEC
Transcript
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AMVETS continue support of students with various scholarship opportunitiesThe Illinois AMVETS Service Foundation has been offering scholarship opportunities for over 40 years. In fact, since 2000, Illinois AMVETS has awarded $1.35 million in scholarships. This year Illinois AMVETS Ser-vice Foundation is offering the following scholarships: Illinois AMVETS Service Foundation, Il-linois AMVETS Junior ROTC and Illinois AMVETS Trade School. All Illinois High School Seniors graduating 2012-2013 school year are eligible. Applications were sent to all high schools in Illinois in early November. You can also download an application by visit-ing: http://www.ilamvets.org/prog_scholarships.cfm. Following are sponsored scholarships and requirements for each:
Illinois AMVETS Service Foundation Scholarship 1-Year, $1,000 Non-renewable Eligibility Requirements:1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior2. Applicant must have taken the ACT or SAT
Illinois AMVETS JROTC 1-Year, $1,000 Non-renewable Eligibility Requirements:1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior2. Applicant must have taken the ACT or SAT3. Participate in a Junior ROTC program
Illinois AMVETS Trade School Scholarship 1-Year, $1,000 Non-renewable Eligibility Requirements:1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior who has been accepted in a
pre-approved trade school program (A copy of an acceptance letter must accompany the application.)
Subsidiary Organizations Illinois AMVETS subsid-iary organizations are also proud to offer scholarships.
Illinois AMVETS Sad SacksOne Year Scholarship, Monetary Amount To Be Determined Eligibility Requirements:1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior who has been accepted in a pre-approved nursing program (A copy of the acceptance letter must accompany the application.)2. Prove satisfactory academic record, character, interest and activity record, and financial need.
AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary Scholarships
Illinois AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary Memorial Scholarship 1-Year, $500 Eligibility Requirements:1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior 2. Applicant must be a child or grandchild of a Veteran who served after September 15th, 1940 and who was Honorably Discharged or who is presently serving in the military.3. Must have taken the ACT or SAT
Information continued on page 2.
In this issue:
• Scholarship details
• Post 235 is in the spotlight
• Insurance info for home-based businesses
• Post 161 helps Operation Warm Heart
• Post 66 & Post 256 participate in holiday events
• Knox County AMVETS get a special donation
• All you need to know about the February SEC
To All AMVETS and Friends,
Welcome to the new year! As 2013 begins, we must remember those in need. Sometimes after the holidays, we forget that people still need encouragement. Make sure you are out there checking on the veterans and their families. Perhaps when the snow falls, you can shovel to help out. I must say my Decem-ber was interesting. I went to Arlington, Virginia for the Fall NEC meeting. Many things were discussed and new ideas were brought to the membership in attendance. The areas of program reporting and membership were hot topics. At the next SEC meet-ing, I will be looking for ideas from those in attendance on ways to improve our membership and reporting of programs. I would like to see each post reporting early and often. We completed with 100% reporting again this year. YEAH! Thanks you, Nicole at Headquarters and Chris Stude-baker, our Programs Vice Com-mander. I was able to attend Post #18’s Christmas Party. What a fun afternoon! Thanks to the members of Post 18. Ladies Auxiliary #115 also invited me to their Christmas Dinner, so thank you to those ladies, as well. I would also like to thank all my officers for their work dur-
ing 2012. Everyone worked hard, and I ask that you continue the good work into 2013. It is my hope to get to posts. If you are looking for me to visit please contact me. I would also like to start a “Meet the State Commander” program. This would entail me attending your post and possibly helping with membership drives. I think this would be a great way to meet your membership and possibly having other veterans in the community come and join your post. Please let me know if this is something you would like to do. Have you been listening to the news lately? The other day I heard that the troops in Af-ghanistan will be home sometime in 2014. What a wonderful an-nouncement! The happiness those families will have at the home-coming will be fantastic. Did you watch the AFC football game on January 5th? Before the game, JEEP had a wonderful commercial. It was a countdown of sorts as to when the troops will come home. They used family members to hold up signs depicting different activities and the number of them until the troops would be home. My favor-ite was “seven more oil changes”. I am sure there wasn’t a dry eye in every household that saw the commercial; there was not a dry eye in my home. You can find the commercial on YouTube if you are
interested. Remember your fellow vets!
Yours in AMVETS,
Cheryl WeglewskiCommander
Page 2 February 2013Illinois AMVETS
Commander’s CornerIllinois AMVETSContact Information
Headquarters Staff:Executive Director: Len Baumgartner
Membership Director: Keith Wetherell
Programs Director: Nicole Richards
Public Relations Director: Ashley Murphy
Executive Assistant:Britton Czmyr
Illinois AMVETS HQ2200 South Sixth St.Springfield, IL 62703
217.528.4713
Service Department:National AMVETS Illinois OfficeLocated at the Chicago VA Regional Office, 312.980.4256
Regional Director: Richard MillerNSO: Jason DulinskiAccredited VSO: Connie Deleonardis
Illinois Office LocationsMike RagusaDeputy Service Director309.235.5090
Mark RossDanville VAMC217.554.4838
Harold DukalaCaptain Lovell FHCC847.688.1900 ext. 84138
Ed HumphreyVAMC Marion618.997.5311 ext. 54743
George SebastianBob Michel Peoria CBOC 217.494.1454Moline Vet Center309.762.6954
Mary Ann WhiteHines VA Hospital 708.202.2564 Auburn Greshem Clinic773.651.7459
Scholarship information continuedIllinois AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary Worchid Scholarship - 1-Year, $500 Eligibility Requirements:1. Applicant must be an Illinois High School Senior 2. Applicant must be a child of a deceased Veteran who served after September 15th, 1940 and who was Honorably Discharged. They need not be killed in action or died as a result of a service- connected disability.
3. Must have taken the ACT or SAT.
Please note that all Ladies Auxil-iary scholarship applications will be sent to:AMVETS Ladies Auxiliaryc/o Penelope GoinsPO Box 372Groveland, IL 61535
Questions about these scholar-hsips may be directed to Nicole Richards, Programs Director, by email at [email protected]. •
AMVETS:
Happy New Year every-one. I hope you had a great holi-day season. I would like to congratu-late all of the posts
for 100% reporting of your programs for the period ending December 2012. I would also like to thank Department Commander Cheryl Weglewski and Programs Direc-tor Nicole Richards for all of their help in achieving 100% for post reporting. We are now two months into the new reporting period for your programs that ends June 30. I am sure that we can get to the 100% again. One of the programs that will be coming up soon will be scholarship judging for the districts. This is a great way for you post to get some hours for judging scholarships and it lets you read about some amazing kids. The districts are always looking for AMVETS to help judge scholarships. I hope to see everyone at the SEC February 22-24 in Springfield at the Abraham Lin-coln Hotel. Don’t forget that there are many ways to report your pro-grams. You can do it on-line at
the national website, mail it in to state headquarters, call me and I will report it, or you can call state headquarters and report them to Nicole. If you have any ques-tions about the many programs AMVETS have or would like me to come and visit your post or attend one of your functions, please do not hesitate to give me a call and I will be more than happy to help you out.
Yours in service,Christopher Studebaker
S/V of Programs
AMVETS:
It is 2013, which means we survived another year. I hope ev-eryone had a wonder-ful, Merry Christmas and a very
Joyous New Year. Last year, 2012, was a pretty good year for us. A very busy one, too. We ended the year down a little in membership, so this year we must work a little harder on new members and get-ting those that have not renewed their membership yet to do so. The easiest way to do that is to contact those that have not renewed personally by phone and talk to them about AMVETS. Everyone likes a call about something. It shows the post and AMVETS cares about them. Another way to get veterans interested in the post and AMVETS is to make sure they know about the programs you do. Getting your name out there is the best way to get them interested enough to find out about you, especially if the things you do are things they might be interested in. That brings people around and asking questions. We have to find ways to bring in new members. We have to stop our slow slide downward.
If half of our active mem-bers would sign up just one new member our membership would increase by 50%. If everyone could do that our membership would double. Let us each try harder this year. I will try to visit each district and as many individual posts as I can the second half of the AMVET year. I would be more than happy to visit any post, all you have do is request it either call me direct, my cell phone number is 309-267-8430—voice only no texts—or send me an email. Or you could call headquarters and let them know when you would like to have me visit. It is my honor to serve you as SVC Membership. I really enjoy getting out and talking to everyone that I can. In June, I will be running for Department Commander, and I ask for your support. If we work together, I’m sure we can stop our mem-bership numbers from going down. God Bless each and every one of you, our troops wher-ever they may be, AMVETS, our families, and the Unites States of America.
Yours in service,Paul Kerby
S/V of Membership
February 2013 Page 3Illinois AMVETS
Membership Department Programs Department
UpcomingEvents
Feb 10, 2013 at 1 PM District V Meeting
Location: Post 4 in Mt.Vernon, ILContact: Don JohnsonPhone: 618-586-2006
District OfficersBelow you will find a list of your
District Officers. These officers are there to help you out on post
matters, and keep you informed about AMVETS information. If
you have a question or would like to know when your next district meet-
ing is, give them a call!
District I Commander Robert Przybylinski773-385-1007
1st Vice William Luna773-551-4750
2nd Vice Richard Shea, Jr. 773-646-3406
District IICommander Angelo Diliberti 847-931-4184
1st Vice Don Wesner 847-888-0766
2nd Vice Harlow Pues 815-232-8681
District IIICommander David Hicks 217-638-0649
1st Vice Mike Allen
2nd Vice Glen Hopper 217-243-6216
District IVCommander Terry Norgaard 815-341-0886
1st Vice Scott Lucas 217-377-7793
2nd Vice Ryan Carruthers 815-573-2361
District VCommander Don Johnson 618-586-2006
1st Vice Ava Carpenter 618-246-4890
2nd Vice Brian Winfield 618-616-7748
Visit the Upcoming Events section of www.ilamvets.org to find out when your
next district meeting is being held!
Pekin AMVETS Post 235 takes the AMVETS Department of Illinois’ mission of improving the lives of our nation’s veterans and the communities in which they live seriously. For the month of Febru-ary, Post 235 is in the spotlight for several community projects. Post 235 based Tazwell Area Ceremonial Team, along with the Pekin High School JROTC, put flags out at the town
cemetery before Veteran’s Day. After Veteran’s Day, the same group of volunteers and students collected the flags. This is a twice-a-year project, also oc-curring on Memorial Day. Members and their families also participated in the Winter Wonderland Parade. The team is the Honor Guard that starts the parade and is followed by three trucks – red, white and
blue – carrying the rest of the vol-unteers along with the branch and post flags.
Finally, Post 235 and the Tazwell Area Ceremonial Team (based out of the post), recently delivered items to
the Quincy Veteran’s Home. The items filled up two vehicles, and included 4,722 items. The to-tal value of the donated clothing, books and other care items, came
to over $10,500. The group does this two to three times per year with the help of the community, Honor Guard and other veterans’ service organizations. (Shown are AMVETS Larry McWheeler, James Smith and S/V Commander of Membership Paul Kerby.)•
Continued support of our overseas heroes
AMVETS Department of Illi-nois continues to send over 5.11 Tactical Gear shirts to our mili-tary men and women stationed overseas. These shirts contain a special fabric that is fire retardant and won’t wash or wear out. The shirt program began in 2007, and the Illinois AMVETS are proud to have continued dis-tributing these life-saving shirts for five years.
In addition to the shirts, each care package mailed con-tained a 275-minute phone card for soldiers to keep in contact with their loved ones while de-ployed. Would you like to make a donation to support programs like this? Visit www.ilamvets.org to make a secure PayPal donation that is also tax-deductible! •
An estimated 8,000 new home based businesses start every day! Why so many, you ask? Tech-nology has made it possible for people to work from home. Many companies are downsizing, en-abling many “retirees” to become consultants, or otherwise work on their own. Whatever the reason may be, an exposure exists, and, without the proper coverage en-dorsements to your homeowner policy there could be gaps in your protection. Let’s now think of the some of the worst that can hap-pen to your business. Have you thought what to do in case your home business gets disrupted due to a hurricane, tornado, fire or simply an operating system crash on your computer? If not, then it is time to think of it. Disaster can happen anytime; rather than hit-ting the panic button you should have proper coverage to protect you during these unforeseen cir-cumstances. CONSUMERS FIRST can help with a simple endorsement added to a homeowner policy which is tailored to meet the needs of your small businesses. We can help you avoid those gaps and provide the coverage needed for your home-based business exposures. Some of the coverage fea-tures that can be provided: • $10,000 to $50,000 of Business Personal
Property coverage • Business Income and Extra Expenses coverage for up to 12 months, should you have to relocate your business while repairs are being completed • Business Property of Others up to $2,500. Additional limits are available up to $10,000.• $5,000 for Valuable Papers, Accounts Receivable and Business data. This includes coverage to replace or restore your business data. • Liability coverage for Bodily Injury and Property Damage Liability. Personal Injury and Advertising Injury are also included for certain classes of business. Even Products and Completed Operations coverage can even be added for eligible types of business! So, the next time you are reviewing your coverage, ask yourself if you have a home-based business exposure that you need to have properly cov-ered. Check out our Home Based Business program.
Call a personal lines specialist at CONSUMERS FIRST today if you have any questions.
###Please contact us for more details on how you can support the AMVETS, Dept. of Illinois by getting your insurance needs quoted. Please also note, this program extends to any member, family or sup-porter of AMVETS.
ABOUT US: CONSUMERS FIRST continually shops top-rated companies to find clients the best products for the best value. Also, when you, your family or friends purchase insurance through the CONSUMERS FIRST AMVETS Insurance program, AMVETS receives funding when the policy is purchased and EVERY time it renews!
PLEASE REMEMBER: Of every dollar donated to AMVETS Department of Illi-nois through the CONSUMERS FIRST AMVETS Insurance Program, 50% goes back directly to the Posts!
Please contact the AMVETS Insurance program to learn more. Call 1-888-215-0613 or go to www.SupportAMVETS.org. Insurance services are provided by CONSUMERS FIRST. Offering may vary by state. •
February 2013 Page 5Illinois AMVETS
Proper Insurance for your Home Based Businesses can be as easy as a phone call
AMVETS Post 256 helps to make a merry holiday seasonAMVETS Post #256, Springfield, helped to make the holiday sea-son a little brighter for residents at a local nursing home. Volunteers from Post #256 helped set up for the East Gate Nursing Home’s Christmas dinner by setting up 50 tables and chairs for residents. Post and auxiliary members also played Santa and Mrs. Claus. In addition, the post do-nated a box of canned goods to a local food pantry. •
Mascoutah Post 161 participates in Operation
Warm Heart
Pictured are members of the Mascoutah AMVETS Post 161 presenting food baskets and hams to Master Sergeant (MSgt) Kevin Swieda. MSgt Swieda is a First Sergeant at Scott Air Force Base who dis-tributed the food baskets and hams as part of the program he heads: Operation Warm Heart. The AMVETS donation is aimed at families of airmen deployed overseas during the holidays. AMVETS Post 161 has been active this year in “giving back;” in addition to the food baskets, the Post hosted a barbecue at Jefferson Barracks this Fall for wounded/injured veterans and medical staff of the Spinal Recovery Unit. The post also held fundraisers and contributed to the founding of the National US Army Museum scheduled to open in 2015 at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Post 161 meets at the Mascoutah American Legion on the first Saturday of each month at noon. Article submitted by Lt Col (Ret) Victor Manges. •
Page 6 February 2013Illinois AMVETS
Important AMVETS noticesNews You Can Use
Not getting the newspaper? Contact the State headquarters at 217.528.4713 to get added to the mailing list.
Need to update your address?Let us know 8 weeks before you go!
Want to access the monthly mailer, membership/programs/PR manual?Visit www.ilamvets.org in the membership section!
Directories and CBLs can be emailed to you! Request your copy by emailing Ashley Mur-phy at [email protected].
Are you getting our email notices?Add your email to our mail-ing list at www.ilamvets.org to be regularly notified of our upcoming events, latest news-paper issues, membership updates and much more!
District and Post MeetingsVisits from the Commander
Post your meetings online!Notify your membership of the latest post and district meet-ings by submitting meeting times to the upcoming events section of www.ilamvets.org.
Want the Department Commander to visit your post?Contact State Headquarters at 217.528.4713.
Need assistance?
AMVETS Department of Il-linois is ready to help you and your post succeed! Please let us know if you need any assis-tance with advertising events or contacting the media. We’re here to help!
District IPost 7, 13, 17, 18, 34, 37, 243, 247 & 326 -Chicago; Post 5-Skokie; Post 43- Burnham; Post 66-Wheeling; Post 97-Oak Park; Post 99- Brookfield; Post 192- Bridgeview; Post 268-Glenwood; Post 277- Streamwood; Post 326 - Chicago
District IIPost 26-Depue; Post 32- Free-port; Post 35-Waukegan; Post 90-Dekalb; Post 91-Hampshire; Post 103- Aurora; Post 123-Dixon; Post 145-East Moline; Post 180 - Princeton; Post 202- Elgin; Post 245- Cary Grove; Post 269-Wood-stock; Post 503 - St. Charles
District IIIPost 8-Knoxville; Post 16 - Li-tchfield; Post 29 - Taylorville; Post 44 - Pana; Post 55-Mount Olive; Post 61- Chatham; Post 64- Peoria; Post 76- Ursa; Post 77- Chillicothe; Post 94-Spring-field; Post 100-Jacksonville; Post 104-Quincy; Post 169-North Pekin; Post 179-Greenview; Post 235- Pekin; Post 256-Springfield; Post 257-Springfield
District IVPost 3- Champaign; Post 14-Clin-ton; Post 30-Ottawa; Post 41-Mar-shall; Post 52-Fisher; Post 53 - Morris; Post 67- Beecher; Post 75 - Danville; Post 84 - Crete; Post 107-Manteno; Post 113-Brad-ley; Post 115 - Pontiac; Post 120-Streator; Post 270-Bloom-ington; Post 276 - Elliott; Post 278-Colfax; Post 312-Streator
District VPost 4-Mt. Vernon; Post 11 - Cai-ro; Post 31 - Marion; Post 33 - Pal-estine; Post 40 - Effingham; Post 51-Granite City; Post 101-Cen-tralia; Post 132-Metropolis; Post 140-Greenville; Post 148-Walton-ville; Post 149 - West Frankfprt; Post 156 - Waterloo; Post 161-Bel-leville; Post 204-Madison; Post 267-Jerseyville
Scan the QR code below to go directly to our membership
application!
AMVETS Posts
AMVETS, U of Phoenix, Provide $350,000 in ScholarshipsOn November 11, 2012, in honor of Veteran’s Day, Uni ver sity of Phoenix® and AMVETS an-nounced the names of 50 ser vice mem bers, vet er ans and mil i tary fam ily mem bers nation wide who will receive $7,000 schol ar ships to pur sue degrees at the Uni ver sity of Phoenix. These schol ar ships, total ing $350,000, are in addi tion to the more than 225 schol ar-ships Uni ver sity of Phoenix and AMVETS have pro vided to the mil i tary and vet eran com mu nity since 2007 in order to help vet er-ans and their fam i lies pur sue their edu ca tional goals and more eas ily tran si tion from the mil i tary to the civil ian sector.
AMVETS National Com man der Cleve Geer praised the Uni ver sity of Phoenix AMVETS Schol ar ship pro gram, and the oppor tu ni ties it pro vides to active duty and tran-si tion ing ser vice mem bers and their families.
“Now more than ever, we must do all we can to enable our vet-er ans to pur sue their edu ca tional goals and pre pare them selves for the careers of tomor row,” said Geer. “Together with our exclu-sive edu ca tion part ner, Uni ver sity of Phoenix, AMVETS is hon or ing
our vet er ans’ ser vice and sac ri-fice by pro vid ing schol ar ships that will help to enrich the lives of these great Amer i cans and their families.”
“As ser vice mem bers return from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, we want them to be bett er pre-pared for career oppor tu ni ties in the mil i tary and civil ian sec tor,” said Asso ciate Regional Vice Pres-i dent for Uni ver sity of Phoenix’s Mil i tary Divi sion retired Army Col. Gar land Williams. “The 2012 Uni ver sity of Phoenix AMVETS Schol ar ships pro vide America’s active duty ser vice mem bers, their fam i lies and vet er ans access to increase their pro fes sional skill sets through edu ca tion in order to help them secure future employ-ment opportunities.”
The Bureau of Labor sta tis tics re-ports that the unem ploy ment rate for vet er ans who served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces from Sep tem ber 2001 through March 2012, a group referred to as the Gulf War-era II Vet er ans , was 12.1 per cent.* The Uni ver-sity and AMVETS under stand the crit i cal need for America’s active duty ser vice mem bers, vet er-ans and their fam i lies to mar ket
them selves among job seek ers in today’s com pet i tive employ ment land scape. There fore, the 2012 Uni ver sity of Phoenix AMVETS Schol ar ships pro vide these indi-vid u als with access to edu ca tional opportunities.
The Uni ver sity is proud of the mil i tary mem bers, vet er ans and their fam i lies who earned their degrees from Uni ver sity of Phoe-nix while bal anc ing fre quent moves, rig or ous train ing sched-ules and deploy ments. Cur rently, more than 50,000 active-duty ser vice mem bers, vet er ans and their fam i lies grad u ated from Uni ver sity of Phoenix asso ciate, bachelor’s, master’s and doc toral degree pro grams worldwide.
To learn more about local degree offer ings and spe cial dis counts of-fered to active duty ser vice mem-bers, vet er ans and their fam i lies, please visit http://www.phoenix.edu/military.
To learn more about the Uni ver-sity of Phoenix AMVETS Schol-ar ship and other pro grams and ser vices AMVETS pro vides to the vet er ans com mu nity, please visit http://www.amvets.org. •
February 2013 Page 7Illinois AMVETS
As is tradition, Wheeling Post 66 once again hosted sailors for their yearly Thanksgiving at the post. Ninety sailor recruits and 30 volunteers were in attendance. A full meal was served. There were 30 telephone booths set up, as well as computers, a pool table, juke box and games for all to use. The Warrior Watch rid-ers escorted the bus from base to post where more riders met the buses. In December, Wheeling Post 66 hosted a Christmas Party for families in their local commu-nity. Forty children and their parents attended the party,
where Santa and Mrs. Claus were present. Each child that attended received a Walmart gift card. Refreshments were also provided. •
Wheeling Post 66 hosts Thanksgiving for Sailors, Christmas for the Kids
Knox County AMVETS receive donation from Hardee’s
Knox County Post #8 was a participant in the “Helping Local Heroes” event in their commu-nity this past November. Hardee’s in Knoxville and Monmouth sold post card-sized flags to customers as a fundrais-er. The customers who purchased the flags wrote encouraging notes on the back of the post card, and those notes were forwarded onto troops currently overseas. The fundraiser allowed Hardee’s to make donations to local veterans organizations. The Hardee’s in Knox-ville and Monmouth is owned by Westar Foods. In addition to the $1 cost of the flag, the donations
also came with a free small drink. The fundraiser, which ended on November 30, 2012, brought in enough money for Hardee’s to donate $2,500 to Knox County AMVETS Post #8. Other monies were donated to other local veterans groups. Shown above is Hardee’s District Manager Chris Hampton and Knoxville General Manager Kim McDaneld presenting the check to Post #8 Commander Rich VanNatta. •
AMVETS VAVS program at the Illinois Veterans Home Manteno
The Manteno Veterans’ Home opened in 1986, located east of the city of Manteno in Kankakee County. The home is located on a 122 acre campus and comprised of five major nursing care units and two ancillary service and support buildings. With a total capacity of 340 beds, the Man-teno Home offers skilled care and Alzheimers Unit programs and services to eligible veterans. AMVETS has two official VAVS coordinators at Manteno: Representative Ryan Carruthers and Deputy (and Department Commander) Cheryl Weglewski. Post 107 (District IV) is actually housed at the IVH Manteno loca-
tion. This fiscal year, the VAVS program has put on two different programs at the facility. The first is a bingo, which was concluded by a special snack of White Cas-tle. The second special event was held on November 16th, when all members celebrated the 100th birthday of a veteran who resides at Manteno. The AMVETS VAVS program helped to supply the food for the birthday celebration. In addition, the VAVS program has purchased CDs and DVDs for the residents, and provided woodworking materials for the woodworking class offered at the facility. •
Page 8 February 2013Illinois AMVETS
DBQs can help speed the processing of compensation and pension claims
Resources available for Illinois veterans dealing with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
This month’s column comes from Veteran’s Service Officer George Se-bastian. Mr. Sebastian can be found at Bob Michel Peoria CBOC and the Moline Vet Center.
Disability Benefits Question-naires (DBQs) are downloadable forms for Veterans to use in the disability evaluation process. DBQs can help speed the process-ing of compensation and pension claims. DBQs allow Veterans and Service members to have more control over their dis-ability claims process by giving them the option of completing an examination with their own healthcare provider instead of at a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility. DBQs enable private healthcare providers to capture important information needed by VA to ac-curately evaluate and promptly decide Veterans’ claims for ben-efits. More than 70 DBQs are available that use check boxes and standardized language to streamline the process. DBQs av-erage about five pages in length. Veterans are responsible for any fees their private provider may charge for completing a DBQ.DBQs are an important example of the initiatives the Veterans
Benefits Administration (VBA) is implementing under its Transfor-mation Plan. The goals of VBA’s Transformation are:• eliminate the backlog in disability claims;• increase access to services and benefits; and• end Veteran homelessness VBA is committed to providing world-class service by transform-ing the way it does business. People, process, and technology changes will help VBA reach its goal of increasing efficiency and engaging Veterans, Service mem-bers, their families, and survivors – when, where, and how they desire. A list of forms that are printable can be found at the below website: http://benefits.va.gov/TRANS-FORMATION/dbqs/ListByDBQ-FormName.asp DBQs are available for: Cardiovascular, Ear, Nose, and Throat, Endocrinology, Gastro-intestinal, Genitourinary, Gy-necological, Hematologic and Lymphatic, Infectious Diseases, Musculoskeletal, Neurological, Ophthalmological, Psychologi-cal, Respiratory, Rheumatologic Diseases, and General Surgical.
Yours in service,George Sebastian
Veterans Issues
For updates, visit the following
websites:
www.va.gov
www.veterans.illinois.gov
SPRINGFIELD – The National Institute of Medicine estimates that 20 percent of the 2.6 million U.S. service members who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan have symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Now and throughout the year, the Illinois Warrior Assistance Program (IWAP) is a free resource that is available for veterans and their families. Veterans or loved ones can call to ask questions, be screened for PTSD or traumatic brain injury (TBI), and receive free follow-on counseling when needed. “It is important for veter-ans to understand that seeking help for symptoms of PTSD is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of strength,” said IDVA Director Erica Borggren. “The good news for Illinois veterans and their families is that there are confi-dential treatment options avail-able so they can access the help they need and deserve.” Day or night, IWAP is available for veterans and their families dealing with PTSD or other challenges associated with returning from combat. Signs and symptoms of PTSD vary and may include trouble sleeping, concentrating or remembering; anger, irritability or anxious-ness; or, frightening thoughts or nightmares. Diagnosis of PTSD occurs through initial screenings and testing, which are available through IWAP and other IDVA programs. IWAP also provides coverage for outpatient services that treat PTSD, specifically for Illinois veterans who do not have insurance and/or immediate ac-cess to VA-covered services. IWAP is part of Governor
Pat Quinn’s mission and com-mitment to support the men and women of the armed forces and ensure that veterans and cur-rent service members receive the benefits and services they have earned. As a free and confidential resource provided by the State of Illinois, IWAP is a separate entity and bears no connection to the U.S. Armed Forces or the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans can access the pro-gram’s benefits 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via an online chat option at www.illinoiswarrior.com or through IWAP’s toll-free helpline at 1-866-554-4927. •
WASHINGTON – The Depart-ment of Veterans Affairs an-nounced today it is cutting red tape for Veterans by eliminating the need for them to complete an annual Eligibility Verification Report (EVR). VA will implement a new process for confirming eli-gibility for benefits, and staff that had been responsible for process-ing the old form will instead focus on eliminating the compensation claims backlog. Historically, beneficiaries have been required to complete an EVR each year to ensure their pen-sion benefits continued. Under the new initiative, VA will work with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
and the Social Security Adminis-tration (SSA) to verify continued eligibility for pension benefits. “By working together, we have cut red tape for Veterans and will help ensure these brave men and women get the benefits they have earned and deserve,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. VA estimates it would have sent nearly 150,000 EVRs to beneficiaries in January 2013. Eliminating these annual reports reduces the burden on Veterans, their families, and survivors be-cause they will not have to return these routine reports to VA each year in order to avoid suspension
of benefits. It also allows VA to redirect more than 100 employees that usually process EVRs to work on eliminating the claims backlog. “Having already instituted an expedited process that enables wounded warriors to quickly access Social Security disability benefits, we are proud to work with our federal partners on an automated process that will make it much easier for qualified Veter-ans to maintain their VA benefits from year to year,” said Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security. “The IRS is taking new steps to provide critical data to help speed the benefits process for
the nation’s Veterans and Veterans Affairs,” said Beth Tucker, IRS Deputy Commissioner for Opera-tions Support. “The IRS is pleased to be part of a partnership with VA and SSA that will provide needed data quickly and effective-ly to move this effort forward.” All beneficiaries currently receiving VA pension benefits will receive a letter from VA explain-ing these changes and providing instructions on how to continue to submit their unreimbursed medi-cal expenses.•
February 2013 Page 9Illinois AMVETS
Veterans Issues
Report Reveals Further Reduction in Veterans HomelessnessVA Also Announces $300 Million to Expand Homeless Prevention Program
WASHINGTON – The Depart-ments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today announced that a new national report shows that homelessness among Veterans has been reduced by approximately 7 percent between January 2011 and January 2012. The decline keeps the Obama Administration on track to meet the goal of ending Veteran homelessness in 2015. “This report continues a trend that clearly indicates we are on the right track in the fight to end homelessness among Veter-ans. While this is encouraging news, we have more work to do and will not be satisfied until no Veteran has to sleep on the street,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “The success we have achieved is directly attribut-able to the hard work by all of our staff, and the federal, state, and community partners who are committed to ending Veteran homelessness.” HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan added, “This decline tells us that the Obama Adminis-tration is on the right path, work-ing together across agencies to
target Federal resources to pro-duce a measurable reduction in Veteran homelessness. Key to this success has been VA and HUD’s implementation of the Housing First approach endorsed by the Administration’s strategic plan to prevent and end homelessness. As our nation’s economic recovery takes hold, we will make certain that our homeless veterans find stable housing so they can get on their path to recovery.” The 2012 Annual Home-less Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress, prepared by HUD, estimates there were 62,619 home-less Veterans on a single night in January in the United States, a 7.2 percent decline since 2011 and a 17.2 percent decline since 2009. The AHAR reports on the extent and nature of homelessness in America. Included in the report is the annual Point-in-Time (PIT) count, which measures the num-ber of homeless persons in the U.S. on a single night in January 2012, including the number of homeless Veterans. VA has made ending Vet-eran homelessness by the end of 2015 a top priority, undertaking
an unprecedented campaign to dramatically increase awareness of VA services available for home-less Veterans and Veterans at risk of becoming homeless. While the number of homeless people in the U.S. dropped by less than 1 per-cent, according to the 2012 AHAR, Veteran homelessness has shown a more robust decline. VA also announced the availability of $300 million in grants for community organiza-tions, estimated to serve approxi-mately 70,000 Veterans and their family members facing homeless-ness. The deadline for applying to the Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program, a homelessness prevention and rapid re-housing program, is Feb. 1, 2013. “Homeless prevention grants provide community part-ners with the opportunity to help prevent and end homelessness on the local level,” said Secretary Shinseki. “This is a crucial tool in getting at-risk Veterans and their families on the road to stable, secure lives. ” SSVF grants promote housing stability among home-
less and at-risk Veterans and their families. The grants can have an immediate impact, helping lift Veterans out of homelessness or providing aid in emergency situ-ations that put Veterans and their families at risk of homelessness. Through September 2012, SSVF has aided approximately 21,500 Veterans and over 35,000 individuals. Since SSVF is able to help the Veteran’s family, 8,826 children were also assisted, help-ing Veterans keep their families housed and together. Grantees provide a range of supportive services to very low-income Vet-eran families living in or transi-tioning to permanent housing, including case management, legal assistance, financial counseling, transportation, child care, rent, utilities and other services aimed at preventing homelessness. The availability of SSVF funds was announced in a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) posted in the Federal Register and on VA’s SSVF website at www.va.gov/homeless/ssvf.asp. •
VA, SSA and IRS Cut Red Tape for Veterans and SurvivorsNew Policy Eliminates Paperwork, Allows More VA Staff to Focus on Eliminating Claims Backlog
Page 10 February 2013Illinois AMVETS
The February SEC Meeting will be held February 22-24, 2013! All AMVETS members are welcome to attend and are eligible for dis-counted rate of $70 per night plus sales and tax. The SEC is held at the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel, 701 E Adams St., Spring-field, Illinois. Please register online for this meeting by completing the form at: http://www.ilamvets.org/events_secreg.cfm. If you are unable to access the website, you may also contact State Headquar-
ters at 217-528-4713. To ensure proper accommodations, please complete the following form no later than February 18, 2013. All elected and appointed officials must turn in a written report to state Headquarters no later than February 11, 2013. Please submit your SEC report here: http://www.ilamvets.org/sec_form.cfm. Typed reports may also be emailed to [email protected].
Register for the February SEC online today!
President Kelly Speaks
Dear Ladies Auxiliary members,
I hope all of you have had a safe and happy Christmas and New Year. The year always starts off with new beginnings and resolu-tions. Our standard resolutions seem to be about weight loss or to quit smoking. Both resolves are admirable. This year I’m going to ask you to add a couple of possibili-ties to your resolutions. They are not elaborate things. Could you read a book to a kindergartner, send a card to a vet, start sav-ing can tabs, offer help where it might be needed? Make a reso-lution to introduce a lady to the AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary so that she might extend “A Help-ing Hand to All”. Don’t forget to add, helping our Wounded War-riors Project. These are just a few suggestions. Our February SEC will take place on February 22-24, 2013, at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel in Springfield, Illinois. Please make a special effort to attend. There will be a question and answer session on reporting and there will be some focus on honors and awards. I want to insure that all of our auxiliaries who submit entries will not be disqualified for any reason. The key is to report all of the hard work that you do!
February is scholarship month. Our scholarship officer will be hosting a silent auction to raise money for scholarships. All local presidents, please bring a donation to the scholarship auction. When you arrive, please turn your items over to Martha Bean. Note to all local scholar-ship officers: make sure your local high schools have applica-tions and let them know when the deadlines are and who may apply for them. I look forward to see-ing you at the SEC meeting and thank you for all your hard work.
Yours in service,Claudia Kelly
Ladies Auxiliary President2012-2013
February 2013 Page 11Illinois AMVETS
AMVETS Department of Illinois Ladies Auxiliary
Help us O God, to go forth into this New Year with renewed strength. Make us ever mind-ful that there are those who need our aid. Help us in our resolve to make this a better world in which
to live. Amen.
Yours in Auxiliary Service,
Janet Van DeusenDepartment Chaplain
Prayers from the Chaplain
AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary #4 in Mt. Vernon continued their sup-port of families in need in their local community. Shown on the top are members of the auxiliary with toys purchased to donate to need
children for Christmas. The second photo shows PDP Elsie Flerlage (right) with Auxiliary #4 President Donna Bryant presenting a check to John Hick for the Angel Assignments for the food pantry. •
Ladies Auxiliary #4 participates in the community
As we start the month of Febru-ary, we are reminded that this is scholarship month. This is when the locals should be having fundraisers and making sure that the local schools have all the right forms for the students to fill out in time to meet our cut off dates. These dates are clearly spelled out on the applications. Can you remember when you were inj high school and start-ing to take your SAT test, in hopes of doing well enough to qualify for a scholarship and knowing you couldn’t go to college without
one? Money was tight back then, and it still is today. Just one of our scholarships could change the life of a student. The students that we help, one or five, will remember that we hade confidence in them to do us proud. We have to all remember taht the youth in this county are our future. If we can make it just a little easier, they might be able to find a way to help many.
Yours in Auxiliary Service,Martha Bean
Scholarship Chairman
Scholarship news
Silent Auction at the February SEC
Anyone who would like to donate items, please bring them to the SEC. All funds raised will be used to increase the number of scholarships the
Ladies Auxiliary can give!
Illinois AMVETS Service Foundation offers a great oppor-tunity for you to help support our nation’s servicemen and women. Within the Chicago-area AMVETS offers specific lo-cations to drop off donations of household goods and clothing. Attendants will assist you with your donations at each location, so please see the list below for the drop-off site near you. Each site location is open everyday 9-5, unless noted. You can also go to www.amvetspickup.com to email your pickup requests directly from home or call 708-388-7800. The pickup service operates on a routing system allowing for pickups every few days or weeks depending upon your location. We greatly ap-preciate your generous dona-tions and continued support of AMVETS.
All donations are tax-deductible.
Or, make a cash donation:
Site Name Location Host
SiteBride-gview
7325 W. 79th St. Kmart Lot
Brid-geview
10260 S. Harlem Ave. (Site is open everyday from 10-4)
Walmart Parking Lot
Darien 1 blk. west of 75th & Fairview
Walmart Parking Lot
Des Plaines
Oakton/Lee Rd. West side of parking lot in front of KMart
Forest Park**
DesPlaines & Roosevelt Rd.
WalmartClosed tem-porarily
Joliet 1401 Illinois Rte. 59 (�eodore & Rte 59)
Walmart
Lombard 345 W. Roosevelt Rd.(M-Sa. 8-5, Su 9-5)
Kmart lot
Minooka 855 S. Ridge Rd. (Site open every-day 10-4)
Ace Hard-ware
Naper-ville
776 S. Rte. 59 Walmart
Oak Lawn
111th/Cicero Ave.
Kmart (By Garden Center)
Plain�eld 127th St. & Rte. 59 (Site open everyday 10-4)
Walmart (Southside of Lot)
Tinley Park
159th St. (Just east of Harlem Ave.)
Burlington Coat Fac-tory
Willow-brook
Plain�eld Rd./ Rte 83(M-Sa. 8-5, Su. 9-5)
Kmart
Date: Membership: 0Annual 0Life Would you like more info about Riders? 0Yes 0No
Name: Date of Birth: / / Sex: 0Male 0Female
Street: City: State & Zip:
Phone Number: E-mail:
Branch of Service: Month/Year Entered: Month/Year Discharged:
I verify that I am serving, or have served, honorably in the US Armed Forces (Active, Guard or Reserves) after September 15, 1940. DD-214 is required. Your Signature: Sponsor/Post O�cer:
[Membership Application]Mail to: AMVETS Department of Illinois
2200 South Sixth Street, Springfield, Illinois 62703www.ilamvets.org
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